Unless Virginia legislators take swift action, the sales tax holiday that usually occurs during the first weekend of August will soon be a thing of the past.

As of July 1, 2023, the countdown to Virginia’s annual sales tax holiday in August won’t occur this year because of an expiration date in Virginia’s Appropriation Act from 2022. 

The three-day sales tax holiday weekend exempted shoppers of back-to-school supplies, hurricane and emergency preparedness equipment, and select EnergyStar and WaterSense appliances from the 5.3% Virginia state sales tax, as well as any local taxes.

The only information provided on the Virginia Department of Taxation’s website for the 2023 sales tax holiday is: “Pursuant to Item 3-5.25 of the 2022 Appropriation Act (House Bill 30, 2022 Acts of Assembly, Special Session I, Chapter 2), Virginia’s sales tax holiday expires July 1, 2023.”

It’s entirely possible that an amendment to the state budget could be made in time to save the holiday, but it needs to come from the General Assembly’s Finance Committee, and it needs to come soon.

The sales tax holiday first became official in Virginia in 2006, and Democratic legislation to extend the sales tax break was passed in 2017. The original legislation had a sunset date of July 1, 2022.

It appears that efforts to extend the holiday were overshadowed by other General Assembly matters this year, since a permanent fix to the expiration date was not introduced in this year’s session. The current stalled state of budget amendment negotiations also gives little hope that the holiday will be revived before August.